Chillers and Coolers have developed as a proven technology over several decades in a variety of end-user and OEM applications ranging from lasers and analytical equipment to reactors and manufacturing equipment. Specifically, such devices provide stable and reliable cooling for many common heat removal applications, including laser etching, AA furnaces, ICP, rotary evaporators, vacuum systems, reaction vessels, plasma etching, and condenser cooling, among others.
One challenge, however, is the expenses attendant with the use of such equipment, coupled with the lack of task specific expertise needed for the efficient maintenance of such equipment. That is, while the customers of various chillers and coolers may be exceptionally talented scientists, technicians and engineers related to their applications, the end users may not be experts in the diagnosis and service of such equipment. Also, end users and even service personnel may not be aware of the nominal factory level operation parameters of the chiller or cooler being serviced so as to properly diagnose whether the equipment does in fact require servicing. Indeed, anecdotal results from the applicant indicate that as much as 25% or more of service requests for chillers are “false positives,” i.e., not events that require service or replacement of such equipment.
Currently, there exists conventional diagnostic and service technician equipment in the marketplace for testing the efficacy of a chiller, cooler or the like. Unfortunately, such equipment is not integrated with the chiller or cooler. Moreover, such equipment usually requires a service technician that needs to go to the end user's location, or alternatively receives the chiller or cooler at a site remote from the end user for service or repair. Unfortunately, as human nature is more reactive to the care of such equipment, such diagnosis will frequently occur only after the malfunction or degradation in performance of the chiller or cooler. As a result, any servicing requires can require either chiller redundancy, which may not be economically feasible, or downtime creating economic upheaval for the end user. Moreover, the inability to handle service requirements prior to malfunction or degraded performance may impact the effective lifespan of the chiller or cooler, with resulting increases in capital expenditures for the end user. As a result, the chillers and coolers may need a greater ability to test and service such equipment than can be had through human supervision and monitoring of such equipment.
To date, there are no chiller or cooler products which provide an integrated self-test system that can prompt a manufacturer and/or user and indicate that servicing is required in advance of potential malfunction or degradation.
What is needed is a chiller or a cooler with an integrated self-test mechanism that prompts an end user to initiate servicing prior to potential operational problems with such equipment. Moreover, such equipment can involve a self-test mechanism that can be used by any end user, regardless of sophistication.